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Slauson: Bears Offense’s ‘Potential Is Off The Charts’

CHICAGO, IL - NOVEMBER 17: of the Chicago Bears of the Baltimore Ravens at Soldier Field on November 17, 2013 in Chicago, Illinois. The Bears defeated the Ravens 23-20 in overtime. (Photo by Jonathan Daniel/Getty Images)

Bears left guard Matt Slauson (68). (Jonathan Daniel/Getty Images)

(CBS) There’s still a lot of offseason work to be done, in the front office and on the field, but expectations are high for the Bears heading into the 2014 season. That much was made evident when the NFL just last week handed Chicago five primetime games this fall.

Bears left guard Matt Slauson understands all that, and he cautioned that there are pros and cons to being placed in the spotlight.

“Our potential is off the charts,” Slauson said late last week on Bears All Access on 670 The Score. “We have the ability to be one of those high-powered, explosive offenses, and that’s really exciting for me because I’ve never been a part of an offense like that in my whole entire career.

“But the problem with potential is it can be a great compliment or a huge insult. So we have to make sure we’re holding up our end of things, and we don’t take it easy and assume it’s going to happen. We have to make sure we hit the ground running and we go in there and build on what we were able to accomplish last year.”

Slauson added he was proud of the quick transition last year’s offensive line made with so many new faces, including left tackle Jermon Bushrod and center Roberto Garza. The Bears allowed 30 sacks, fourth-fewest in the NFL, and Slauson hopes for more growth this year.

The Bears were second in the NFL in points per game last season.

“In terms of Bushrod and Garza, that happened really quickly,” Slauson said. “Our relationship developed over the spring. One of the great things about Garza, he knows how to build camaraderie with guys. He’s been in this game a long time.”